Portland rallied around Heretic Coffee on Wednesday, Aug. 19, raising more than $10,000 in less than a day after a customer experiencing a mental health crisis kicked through the nonprofit shop's glass front door on SE 28th Avenue.

The shop stayed open. Staff ran after the person who broke the door, not to confront them, but to check whether their foot was injured.

"We were trying to run them down so we could see if their foot is OK because their entire foot went through the glass," owner Josh White told KGW. "We want to make sure they are not bleeding somewhere like crazy."

White said the customer had been inside the shop earlier that morning and was among the people who have received free meals there. Heretic Coffee, a volunteer-staffed nonprofit near Reed College, has served 10,000 free meals as federal SNAP cuts have reduced food assistance across Oregon.

The fundraising response was swift. Contractors offered to cover the door replacement outright. A separate online fundraiser hit $10,000 so fast that White closed it the same day. Excess donations will go toward other repairs so the shop can better serve SNAP recipients.

A Maya Angelou quote was posted on the shattered glass: "You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them."

In a social media post on Aug. 19, White said his team was more shaken by the community's generosity than by the incident itself.

SNAP cuts add urgency

The broken door is a small chapter in a larger story. Heretic Coffee previously raised more than $360,000 to feed Portlanders after federal SNAP benefits were cut, according to KPTV. White pledged to keep the free-meal program running even after benefits were partially restored.

The need hasn't gone away. Gov. Tina Kotek said at a Saturday, Aug. 15, roundtable that 38,000 Oregonians lost SNAP benefits over the past year under new federal requirements enacted through the Trump administration's "One Big Beautiful Bill Act," according to The Oregonian.

As of February, nearly 700,000 Oregonians in about 422,000 households received SNAP benefits.

Patrons Josh Spears and Richard Roach rely on Heretic Coffee's free meals when they don't have enough money for food. Roach said times have been tough.

Nearby business owner Chloe Stuff said the incident was alarming but praised how the shop responded, noting everyone was safe.

How to help

Heretic Coffee continues to accept donations for its SNAP fund through its Givebutter page. The shop, at 5120 SE 28th Ave., is open 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Most baristas volunteer their time so more money goes directly to meals.